“What?”
“First I’ll give you the basis for it.” Wolfe leaned back and half closed his eyes. “You heard me tell those five people yesterday why it is assumed that one of them substituted the capsules. On that assumption, after further talk with them, I stack another: that it is highly improbable that the substitution could have been made, under the circumstances as established, entirely unobserved. It would have required a coincidence of remarkable dexterity and uncommon luck, and I will not accept such a coincidence except on weighty evidence. So, assuming that the substitution was made in the restaurant, I also assume, for a test at least, that one of the others saw it and knows who did it. In short, that there was an eyewitness to the murder.”
Rackell’s mournful face did not light up with interest. His lips were puckered, making the droop at the corners more pronounced. “That may be,” he conceded, “but what good does it do if he won’t talk?”
“I propose to make him talk. Or her.”
“How?”
Wolfe rubbed his chin with a thumb and forefinger. His eyes moved to Mrs. Rackell and back to the husband. “This sort of thing,” he said, “requires delicacy, discretion, and reticence. I’ll put it this way. I will not conspire to get a man punished for a crime he did not commit. It is true that all five of those people may be Communists and therefore enemies of this country, but that does not justify framing one of them for murder. My purpose is clear and innocent — to expose the real murderer and bring him to account; and I suggest a devious method only because no other seems likely to succeed. Evidently the police, after five days on it, are up a tree, and so is the FBI — if it is engaged, and you think it is. I want to earn my fee, and I wouldn’t mind the kudos.”
Rackell was frowning. “I still don’t know exactly what you’re suggesting.”
“I know it; I’ve been long-winded. I didn’t want you to misunderstand.” Wolfe came forward in his chair and put his palms on the desk. “The eyewitness is obviously reluctant. I suggest that you consent to provide twenty thousand dollars, to be paid only if my method succeeds. That will cover my fee for the unusual service I will render and also any extraordinary expense I may incur. Two things must be understood: you approve the expenditure in your interest, and the express purpose is to catch the guilty person.” He upturned his palms. “There it is.”
“My God. Twenty thousand.” Rackell shook his head. “That’s a lot of money. You mean you want a check for that amount now?”
“No. To be paid if and when earned. An oral commitment will do. Mr. Goodwin hears us and has a good memory.”
Rackell opened his mouth and closed it again. He looked at his wife. He looked back at Wolfe. “Look here,” he said earnestly, “maybe I’m thickheaded. It sounds to me as if what this amounts to is bribing a witness. With my money.”
“Don’t be a fool, Ben,” his wife said sharply.
“I think you misunderstand,” Wolfe told him. “To bribe is to influence corruptly by some consideration. Anyone who receives any of your money through me will get it only as an inducement to tell the truth. Influence, yes. Corrupt, surely not. As for the amount, I don’t wonder that you hesitate. It’s quite a sum, but I wouldn’t undertake it for less.”
Rackell looked at his wife again. “What did you mean, Pauline, don’t be a fool?”
“I meant you’d be a fool not to do it, of course.” She felt so strongly about it that her lips moved. “It was you who wanted to come to Mr. Wolfe in the first place, and now when he really wants to do something you talk about bribing. If it’s the money, I have plenty of my own and I’ll pay—” She stopped abruptly, tightening her lips. “I’ll pay half,” she said. “That’s fair enough; we’ll each pay half.” She went to Wolfe. “Who is it, that Goheen woman?”
Wolfe ignored her. He asked Rackell, “Well, sir? How about it?”
Rackell didn’t like it. He avoided his wife’s gaze, but he knew it was on him, and it was pressing. He even looked at me, as if my eye might somehow help, but I was deadpan. Then he returned to Wolfe.
“All right,” he said.
“You accept the proposal as I made it?”
“Yes. Only I’ll pay it. I’d rather not — I’d rather pay it myself. You said to be paid if and when earned. Who decides whether you’ve earned it or not?”
“You do. I doubt if that will be a bone to pick.”
“A question my wife asked — do you know who the eyewitness is?”
“Your wife was witless to ask it. If I knew would I tell you? Or would you want me to? Now?”
Rackell shook his head. “No, I guess not. No, I can see that it’s better just to let you—” He left it hanging. “Is there anything else you want to say about it?”
Wolfe said there wasn’t. Rackell got up and stood there as if he would like to say something but didn’t know what. I arose and moved toward the door. I didn’t want to be rude to a client who had just bought a suggestion that would cost him twenty grand, but now that he had okayed it I had a job to do and I wanted to get going. I still didn’t know where Wolfe thought he was headed for, but the sooner I got started on my instructions the sooner I would know. They finally came, and I went ahead and opened the front door for them. She held his elbow going down the stoop. I shut the door and rejoined Wolfe in the office.
“Well?” I demanded. “Do I proceed?”
“Yes.”
“It’s nearly half-past six. If I offer to buy her a meal — I doubt if that’s the right approach.”
“You know the approaches to women, I don’t.”
“Yeah.” I sat at my desk and pulled the phone to me. “If you ask me this stunt you’ve hatched is a swell approach to a trip to the hoosegow. For both of us.”
He grunted. I started dialing a number.
V
New York can have pleasant summer evenings when it wants to, and that was one of them — warm but not hot and not muggy. I paid the taxi driver when he rolled to the curb at the address on Fifty-first Street east of Lexington, got out, and took a look. In bright sunshine the old gray brick building would probably show signs of wear and tear, but now in twilight it wasn’t too bad. Entering the vestibule, I scanned the tier of names on the wall panel. The one next to the top said DEVLIN — BERK. I pushed the button, shoved the door open when the click came, went in, glanced around for an elevator and saw none, and started to climb stairs. Three flights up a door stood open, and there waiting was Delia Devlin.
I told her hello, friendly but not profuse. She nodded, not so friendly, hugged the wall to let me pass, shut the door, and went by me to lead the way through an arch into a living room. I sent my eyes around with an expression of comradely interest. The chairs and couch were attractive and cool in summer slips. There were shelves of books. The windows were on the street, and there were three doors besides the arch, two of them standing open and one not quite closed.
She sat and invited me to. “I can’t imagine,” she said in a louder voice than seemed necessary, in spite of the street noises from the open windows, “what you want to ask me that’s so mysterious.”
Sitting, I regarded her. Only one corner lamp was on, and in the dim light she wasn’t at all bad looking. With smaller ears she would have been a worthy specimen, with no glare on her.
“It’s not mysterious,” I protested. “As I said on the phone, it’s private and confidential, that’s all. Mr. Wolfe felt it would be an imposition to ask you to come to his office again, so he sent me. Miss Berk is out, is she?”